It's Down in Old Ireland

DESCRIPTION: The singer was born in Limerick. In spite of his mother's pleading he "carried on with my wicked career." He marries and takes up highway robbery to care for her, is convicted and transported for seven years. Women are deceitful but he'd have no other
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1953 (Creighton-MaritimeFolkSongs)
KEYWORDS: prison robbery transportation mother wife Ireland
FOUND IN: Canada(Mar)
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Creighton-MaritimeFolkSongs, p. 161, "It's Down in Old Ireland" (1 text, 1 tune)
Roud #490
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "The Wild and Wicked Youth" [Laws L12] (theme)
cf. "Salisbury Plain" (theme)
NOTES [52 words]: Creighton-MaritimeFolkSongs includes this verse partly floated to/from "Old Kimball" (as sung by Texas Gladden):
Now ofttimes I've wondered how women loves man,
And more times I've wondered how men can love them,
For robbing by night and a-planning by day
Which caused me behind this prison walls for to lay. - BS
File: CrMa161

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